A townsite for Mandurah was laid out in 1831, two years after the establishment of the Swan River Colony, but attracted few residents, and until the post-war boom of the 1950s and 1960s it was little more than a small fishing village.

In subsequent years, Mandurah's reputation for boating and fishing attracted many retirees, including to the canal developments in the city's south.

Along with four other local government areas (Boddington, Murray, Serpentine-Jarrahdale, and Waroona), the City of Mandurah is included in the wider Peel region.

Mandurah has grown from isolated holiday communities along the shores of the Peel-Harvey Estuary to a major regional city in just over a decade, in a similar vein to the Gold Coast in Eastern Australia.

Mandurah also has a number of suburbs built around artificially created canal systems that extend from the Peel Inlet, such as Halls Head, Dudley Park and Wannanup.

In terms of geology, much of Mandurah lies on the dune systems which dominate South Western WA's coastline, progressively grading towards the Swan Coastal Plain as one travels inland.

Mandurah is the closest city to Yalgorup National Park which is home to modern thrombolites as well as an array of flora and fauna.

Australian ringnecks face competition for nesting space from rainbow lorikeet, an introduced species in Western Australia, that has now spread to Mandurah.

Mandurah has a typical Mediterranean climate (Köppen classification Csa) with hot dry summers and mild wet winters.

The current weather station opened in 2001 and is situated on the coastline, causing data recorded to appear warmer during winter nights and cooler in summer days compared to surrounding areas.

In addition, most of the winter rains are usually accompanied by severe winds and storms capable of causing widespread damage, making Mandurah one of the windiest cities in Australia.

In December 1829, Thomas Peel arrived in Western Australia from the United Kingdom with workmen, equipment and stores on the ship Gilmore.

Undaunted, Peel built a small settlement named Clarence south of the Swan River Colony at what is known today as Woodman Point.

[10] Facing many problems with the settlement and his own ill-health, Peel led the remaining Clarence settlers to the area known today as Mandurah.

[12] Thomas Peel died in 1865 but Mandurah continued to grow, albeit very slowly, over the years leading to the 20th century.

[14] A railway line between Perth and Pinjarra was opened in 1893, which allowed Mandurah to emerge as a tourism hub in the region.

[39] Much of Mandurah's economy is based on construction, tourism, professional, scientific and technical services, and retail trade, and to a lesser extent on mining and agriculture.

[40] Mandurah is considered the unofficial gateway to the South West and possesses a variety of tourist attractions, most of which are located near the water.

In December, the canal areas in Mandurah becomes well known for their Christmas lights and special boat cruises are often promoted as a result.

Celebrating the region's seafood, the event features food stalls and cooking demonstrations as well as live music and entertainment.

Public transport within Mandurah is provided by Transperth, due to its proximity to Perth itself, with eleven bus routes servicing the city.

It was created to allow saline seawater from the Indian Ocean to flush into the Peel Inlet, to deal with the incidence of algal blooms which had plagued the estuary for many years.

[citation needed] A photograph of Mandurah taken in 1961 adorns the cover of the 1986 album Born Sandy Devotional by The Triffids.